Arabian Days
by ArabianDaze
Summary: The sultan requested the services of a well-known artisan from the far north. When Joseph Sutherland arrived in Agrabah with his daughter, Leona, he thought the city was fascinating. Leona, slightly more skeptical, drew a very different opinion.
1. Day One

_Disclaimer: _I do not own Aladdin, nor do I own any of the characters therein. I do, however, own Leona and Joseph Sutherland, who hail from a medieval state known as Kievan Rus' (which is now modern Ukraine), populated by Norsemen, who are known as _Rus_. The capital of Kievan Rus' is Kiev. Porthaven is entirely fictional, as is any history/setting related to it.

Chapter 1

The fact that they were wearing thick hide clothing and long sable furs belied that they were foreigners and quite unused to the hot desert air. It did not help that it was summer. They looked quite uncomfortable—the man with his wide-brimmed black hat and heavy coat, and the girl behind him wrapped in a long dark cloak with the hood down low over her head. Even their horses were sweating. What could be seen of their faces was red, and their eyes drooped with exhaustion. It was difficult not to notice them and wonder from what far-off kingdom they hailed.

"It isn't much farther, Leona," the man glanced wearily over his shoulder at the girl. "Isn't the city quaint?" Even in the heat, the man's glass-green eyes sparkled with keen interest.

"I've certainly never seen anything like it," Leona replied with equal, but veiled interest.

The man removed his hat for a brief moment, running a hand over his thinning hair. It was fairly long and dark, and pulled back into a tight knot, but there were streaks of silver that practically glowed under the hot summer sun. "It's certainly hotter than anywhere you've been," he laughed wryly and replaced his hat. "Your mother would have loved it here."

Shifting uncomfortably under her cloak, Leona replied, "Can I take my cloak off, Papa? We're close enough to the palace, I'm sure..."

"No, Leona." The man shook his head. "It is improper for young women to be outside without their faces covered. I am sure that we will be able to find you more suitable clothing once we are settled in."

"People are staring," Leona muttered, mostly to herself.

Either her father ignored her, or he was too busy staring at the smooth, alabaster wall that loomed in front of them to reply. "Isn't this marvelous?" He inquired in an awed voice. "Amazing stonework."

As they approached, two guards stepped in front of the tall wooden doorway, which seemed to be the only entrance to the palace grounds that lay within.

"Name and business, please," the guard on the left ordered boredly.

"Joseph Sutherland, and this is my daughter, Leona. The sultan requested my services as an artisan. We have traveled quite far, as you can probably see, and—"

"Papers," the guard interrupted with an outthrust hand.

"Oh, of course," Joseph reached into a pocket somewhere in the inner folds of his coat, rifling for a moment before drawing out a somewhat damp, limp set of papers.

The guard examined them hastily and with thinly veiled disgust before nodding and motioning with a hand toward the gate.

"Go around the back, through the gardens. Servants are _not_ allowed to use the front entrance." He nearly threw the sweaty papers back at Joseph as the heavy wooden doors creaked open.

Leona bit her tongue, frowning beneath her hood. They were _not_ servants. Her father had come to do a job for the sultan, and that was it. She peered at the strange, dark-skinned men in their loose white britches and open vests as she followed her father through the gate. They peered back with equal curiosity, though there was considerably less of her to see under her thick layers of clothing.

The gardens within the wall were quite a sight for Leona, who had never travelled so far from her home. The lawns were a vivid green color that could have never looked so bright except under the searing white sun, and the trees grew twisted and gnarled and in all directions except straight up, their soft jade green leaves providing some shade.

She was sure she would be unable to describe all the scents of the various flowers that grew in copious amounts along the smooth path to the palace, let alone the strange birds that basked in the water, their eyes half closed in the bright light. They were exotic and extraordinary to her.

"What's that?" Leona inquired as they dismounted, tugging at her father's sleeve and pointing toward a large pink bird that was perched on absurdly long, twiggy legs.

"I don't know," Joseph murmured, gazing at it with such interest that he did not notice when a servant discretely removed the horses' reins from his hand and led the beasts away to the stables. They were only steps away from the grand doors to the palace, but the two travelers had been completely absorbed in their curiosity, and they did not realize that they could quite possibly be expected inside.

"Those are flamingos, I believe." The thin, languid voice startled Leona out of her thoughts, and she whirled around to face the newcomer.

He stood head and shoulders above Leona, who considered herself fairly tall for a girl of nearly twenty, and the tall black headdress he wore likely doubled the height he had above her. She stared curiously at the feather stuck to the front of his hat, wondering for what strange ceremony he might possibly need such a strange hat for. Could this be the 'turban' thing her father had been telling her these people often wore? It looked a lot stranger than she had expected. His beard was thin and long, framing his wide mouth and twisting at the end of his chin like a black corkscrew. He looked completely at ease in the heat, despite his dark attire, and he smelled somewhat faintly of alchemy. There was a nagging air of sinister mystery about him that Leona didn't like.

"My," Joseph murmured with interest, just barely turning away from the flamingo to study that man who had approached them. "That certainly is an outlandish costume."

"Perhaps it is not I who is outlandish," the man replied with a bit of a sneer in his voice, studying Leona carefully and with a raised eyebrow.

She realized then that she was still gaping and closed her mouth immediately with a snap. It was difficult not to continue to stare, however, at the man's tall brass-colored staff that he held tightly in one hand. Leona was particularly enthralled by the snake-shaped head, its ruby eyes actually seeming to stare right back at her.

"And just where is it that you hail from, anyway?" The tall man inquired before either of the other two could speak.

"Oh, it's quite far off," Joseph answered with a dismissive wave of his hand. "I'm sure you've never even heard of it."

The man grinned fiercely, murmuring in a silky challenge, "Try me."

"It's naught but a small porting town," Joseph stated. "Porthaven, as a matter of fact. It's quite farther north than Kiev."

"Kievan Rus', then? Am I to assume that you are _Rus_?" The man stared with suspicious amusement at the both of them, Leona in particular, whose hood had slipped from her head and bared her dark red hair.

"We are not native _Rus,_ no." Joseph shook his head. "But it is where I have lived most of my life, and it is all that my daughter has known."

"Then you must be the stoneworker. Sutherland, was it?"

"Yes, I am Joseph Sutherland, the artisan." He frowned and inquired carefully, "Who does that make you to know our business?"

Standing up to his full height, the man looked straight down his hawk-like nose at Joseph through heavily lidded eyes. "I am his majesty's Grand Vizier." He forced a smile and inclined his head the tiniest bit. Leona almost wouldn't have noticed this "bow" except that the bright red feather in the man's turban bent minutely in Joseph's direction. "All matters such as these are directed through me," he added haughtily.

"Oh wonderful!" Joseph's demeanor changed immediately from slightly suspicious to completely welcoming and friendly. "It is a pleasure and an honor to make your acquaintance." He bowed deeply and with exceeding grace.

"I'm sure," was the Grand Vizier's only response. He sighed impatiently and cast a jaundiced glanced toward the palace doors before turning back to Joseph, with one eye still trained on Leona. "The sultan has been expecting you. I suggest you not keep him waiting any longer."

"Of course not," Joseph inclined his head, nearly blinding the other man with the glare off of the bald dome that was the top of his head. "If you could perhaps lead the way?" He suggested with a polite gesture of his hand.

The Grand Vizier smiled thinly, "It would be my pleasure, I am sure."

Leona could tell that he didn't mean it.

A guard stood at either side of the doors to the palace, and when they saw the Grand Vizier approaching, they immediately scurried to open the way for him. It was impossible for Leona to see his face, but she was sure it wasn't a pleasant look to have sent the guards into such a frenzy of flattery. She had to step over the outstretched hands of one who had fallen flat on his face in some strange semblance of bowing to the Grand Vizier. Frowning, Leona wondered what kind of sultan would keep a man who instilled such fear in people around.

"Papa," she hissed, tugging on her father's sleeve.

"Not now, Leona." The older man shook his head and brushed her hand away. He also looked slightly worried, and his forehead glistened with a thin sheen of perspiration, although that was probably just from the intense heat.

It was cooler inside the thick stone walls of the palace, but both father and daughter were still very uncomfortable in their warm traveling clothes. Leona thought longingly of the loose, light summer dresses she had packed in her saddlebags, but she knew that her father's business would quite likely take a fairly long time. It would be dark by the time she could settle into more comfortable clothing.

The chamber they had entered was larger than any Leona had ever seen, and made of finer material as well. The white marble and alabaster gleamed in the golden light that filtered in from outside, and her footsteps, however soft she tried to make them, echoed loudly. At the opposite end was a magnificent golden throne cushioned with pillows of the brightest blue Leona had ever seen.

"Your highness." The Grand Vizier suddenly lost all haughtiness in his demeanor, gushing obsequiously as he crossed the room and approached the throne.

The sultan was not at all what Leona expected to see. He was short, plump, and fair-skinned. Most of his face was covered with white hair from his thick beard, or the gray hair of his eyebrows. He had small bright eyes that glistened with friendliness, and he beamed with all the good nature he seemed able to hold in his stubby form at the tall, olive-skinned man.

"Oh, Jafar! I was wondering where you had disappeared to. I've been having a most frightful time trying to—"

"Of course, your majesty," the man, Jafar, interrupted. He obviously didn't care how the sultan planned on ending that sentence.

Leona wondered briefly how anybody would dare address their ruler with such disrespect. She glanced at her father, who was frowning as well, and staring at the Grand Vizier with careful calculation. Looking back at Jafar, Leona noticed that a bright red bird had suddenly landed on his shoulder. It peered owlishly in her direction, squawking loudly as it stepped anxiously from side to side on the man's shoulder. The man merely glanced Leona's way, absently running a long finger over the bird's feathers to calm it. She didn't like being stared at, and she looked away, concentrating on the sultan.

"Who is this?" The sultan inquired with curiosity as he spied the foreigners, not noticing Jafar's disinterest.

"The artisan you requested to see, your highness," Jafar replied with a discrete roll of his eyes that only Joseph noticed out of the corner of his eye.

Joseph immediately stepped forward and bobbed into another deep bow. "Your majesty," he murmured politely. "My name is Joseph Sutherland, and this," he gestured toward Leona with a hand, "is my daughter, Leona."

"Praise Allah!" The sultan exclaimed with joy, clapping his tiny hands together gleefully. "I have been quite anxious to meet you," the sultan greeted Joseph in a warm voice, taking Joseph by the hand and shaking it vigorously. He peered at Leona and inquired with curiosity, "And just how old are you, young lady?"

"Uh, I—" Leona stuttered, shaken at being so directly addressed by the sultan himself. "I'm almost twenty years, your highness." She curtsied respectfully, biting her lip nervously when both the sultan and his Grand Vizier stared at her. It didn't help that she felt very sick by this point in time.

"Twenty years of age and not yet married?" The sultan exclaimed, exchanging a glance with Jafar, who didn't seem as particularly surprised as he was amused. "Is that customary where you come from?"

Joseph noticed Leona's hesitation and he stepped in smoothly, replying, "No, your highness. I am, unfortunately, quite attached to my daughter. She is all I have left, and I am reluctant to give her away to just any man."

"I quite understand." The sultan nodded. "I, too, have a daughter who is nearing an age at which she should be married." He sighed, shook his head slowly, and then looked up at Leona. "Well, perhaps you two would get along. She does get lonely at times…"

Jafar, whether out of impatience or boredom, cleared his throat loudly, and the sultan jumped slightly. "Perhaps, sire, you could get on to business?"

"Oh yes, yes, of course." The sultan waved Jafar off. "Joseph, is it?" He addressed Leona's father. "I would greatly appreciate it if you might come with me and examine…" He suddenly trailed off, looking at Leona, who had dropped to her knees, her face flushed and her eyes slightly crossed.

"Leona!" Joseph quickly caught her before she fell over. He touched her brow with his hand and frowned. She was burning.

"Oh dear," the sultan exclaimed. "I'm afraid that I didn't take into account your long journey. Please forgive me. Jafar—"

"Yes, your highness?" The man turned slowly toward the sultan, looking as if he was about to wince at any moment. He knew what was coming. The bird on his shoulder let out another loud squawk and repeated, "Highness? Highness?"

"Would you kindly show our guests to the chambers that have been prepared for them? I'm sure they will be much better off with a bit of rest first." He smiled kindly at Joseph, noticing that Leona was already nearly unconscious.

"Thank you, sire," Joseph inclined his head gratefully as he lifted Leona off the ground, balancing her weight in his arms. "I am so sorry to inconvenience you."

"Do not fret! I am sure that tomorrow I will have plenty of time to speak with you about your duties as chief artisan." He absently reached into an inner pocket and pulled a shapeless pasty cracker from within the folds and offered it to the bird on Jafar's shoulder.

The bird obviously did not want the cracker, backing away and trying to hide behind Jafar's turban.

"Chief?" Joseph repeated, stunned. "Your highness, I thought that one project—"

"Well, you must begin somewhere, right?" The sultan beamed, stuffing the cracker forcefully into the bird's beak. "Now off you go. Plenty of time tomorrow to discuss business." He waved them off, Jafar sulky and bad-tempered at being treated like an errand boy, and Joseph too surprised to speak.

Jafar strode quickly through the palace, his long legs carrying him quite far with every step. Joseph was not a short man, nor was he weak, but Leona's extra weight slowed him down, and his breath was gone by the time the Grand Vizier stopped in front of a small, doorway that was only covered by a thin curtain.

"Your room is the next door down," he stated impatiently to Joseph as the man tried to maneuver through the doorway with Leona in his arms.

The curtain did not wish to cooperate with Joseph, and he quickly became entangled, unable to sweep it aside with both his hands already occupied. Jafar merely watched in stoic silence, unwilling to assist the poor artisan. Finally, Joseph stumbled through on the other side, and he was able to gently place Leona on a soft divan couch. He removed her cloak and took off her heavy travelling boots as well. She moaned, her feet sore and swollen from all the travel, waking up slightly at the pain.

"Is there any water nearby?" Joseph rose to his feet and turned to Jafar, who stood in the doorway with a scowl on his face.

"I'll make sure to have a servant bring some. Is there anything else you require?" He asked with a sneer.

Joseph could tell that the man was in an irritable mood. "No, that should be fine, thank you," he replied politely.

"Let me make something very clear," Jafar approached Joseph, leaning forward, his dark brown eyes staring fiercely into Joseph's green ones. "The sultan may have invited you here to help him, _artisan_," he spat out the word with particular emphasis before continuing in a hiss, "but you answer to _me_ first."

Joseph didn't have time to reply with even a "Yes, sir" before the man had whirled around and walked away, his bird cackling noisily as he exited.

Sighing, Joseph glanced around the room, which was large, but fairly simple. Curtains hung from the ceiling and across open archways that led out onto a balcony, and the floor was completely made of polished marble. He noticed a door on one wall, which upon further investigation led to an adjoining room. Seeing his things resting against a table within, he realized that it was his room. Joseph checked on Leona to make sure she would be alright, waiting until a servant had arrived with a bowl of cool water and a clean white cloth, which he immediately soaked in the water. The servant placed a small cup beside the basin of water before disappearing silently.

"Are you alright, Leona?" Joseph murmured, pressing the cool wet cloth against her forehead.

"Papa?" She groaned, her eyes flickering open. "It's so hot," the young woman whispered.

"This should help," he stated softly, dabbing her face with the cloth. "There's water to drink as well, if you're thirsty."

Leona nodded and sat up a bit. "I'm feeling a little better." She stretched and sighed. "I think I want to change into different clothes, if you don't mind."

"Of course not," Joseph replied and stood. "I'll be in that next room if you need anything. Try and rest. Sleep will do you wonders."

"Thank you, Papa." Leona smiled at her father, watching as he left before she located her saddlebags and rifled through them for a change of clothes. She did not get far, however, merely removing her outer clothing before falling back onto the divan in her shift and a single petticoat. Closing her eyes, Leona let herself slip into sleep, exhausted and quite unable to function anymore for the rest of the day.


	2. Day Two

Chapter 2

Nobody knew just how different the artisan and his daughter really were until the next morning, when the sultan took his daily constitutional through the gardens. Jafar walked a few steps behind the old man, gazing boredly at the same surroundings he saw day after day. If he could have been elsewhere, he would have been, but as the sultan's adviser he was required to brief the man on the current state of things every morning.

"Sire," Jafar spoke in a silky tone, "I've been going through a few of the treasury records and—"

"Oh, look, Jafar!" The sultan interrupted as though he hadn't even been paying attention, pointing down into a nearby fountain and trailing a stubby finger through the water. "The koi are out this morning! Aren't they just lovely?"

"Quite," Jafar replied with a face that looked like he had just put salt on a lemon and stuck it in his mouth.

The brightly colored bird on his shoulder bobbed its head and sidestepped closer to Jafar's ear. "Remind me why you follow this bozo around every morning?" It asked in a loud whisper.

"Hush, Iago," Jafar snapped, pinching the bird's beak closed with his long fingers.

"What was that?" The sultan turned around with a wide, inquiring expression on his face.

"Your majesty." Jafar smiled broadly and led the man away from the fountain, guiding him down the path. "Perhaps we should go inside to attend to matters of business. It's much cooler in there, and a bit less distracting."

"Less distracting, less distracting," the bird, Iago, chimed in.

"Oh tosh, Jafar." The sultan brushed him off with an absent wave. "I know why you really don't want me out here." He suddenly stopped walking, causing Jafar to nearly trip over him. "It's my health." The man sighed and kept walking, taking on a chiding tone and wagging his finger up at his vizier. "You really shouldn't worry so much. I've never felt better in my—whoops!" The sultan nearly tripped over a loose flagstone and was only saved from a black eye by Jafar, who caught him by the back of his robe.

Setting the sultan back on his feet, Jafar stated in a voice filled with sympathy, "Your majesty knows I only have your best interests in mind. I believe it would—" He paused and frowned in midsentence, his eyes scanning the shrubbery. Raised voices could be heard on the other side of a row of tall bushes, and they had attracted the attention of the sultan as well. Glowering, Jafar stalked toward an opening in the shrubbery, listening to the voices as he went.

"You aren't blocking your face! Keep your hands up!"

"My face? It's my neck that's on the line here!"

"Block your face and your neck will be covered as well; now keep your hands up!"

Jafar rounded the corner just in time to see Joseph, clad in loose brown breeches with a blue sash around his waist, strike at Leona with a closed fist. The vizier stood staring in astonishment as he watched Leona, who wore a similar outfit as well as a loose white shirt, duck and throw a punch of her own back. The two foreigners seemed oblivious to anything else around them, circling each other with their fists held firmly in front of their faces.

"Shouldn't we do something? This fight looks like it could get serious," the bird on Jafar's shoulder stated.

"No, Iago," he replied with a small smile, not bothering to take his eyes off the scene. "It is not our place to get involved in foreign affairs."

Joseph struck again at Leona, this time with one of his bare feet. She did not leap out of the way in time, and he caught her by the ankles, sending her crashing to the ground. Jafar thought that the fight would be over then, but Leona, still on her back, lashed out with her leg, her heel smashing into the inside of Joseph's thigh.

"Augh!" He cried out, falling to his knees and wincing. Leona tried to get up, but Joseph sideswiped her with his arm, his fist hitting her in the shoulder and knocking her back onto the ground, her head making a loud thump against the grass.

"Truce?" Leona called breathlessly to her father.

"Yes, that's good for today," Joseph nodded, flopping down onto his back.

As they both lay gasping on the ground, the sultan, who had caught up with Jafar sometime during the fight, exclaimed, "My goodness, what is going on here?"

"Going on! Going on!" Iago parroted.

Joseph immediately leapt to his feet—or, rather, tried to stand and slumped back down to his knees. "Hmm," he murmured blandly, "you must have struck a nerve, Leona. Good for you."

Leona massaged her shoulder and flicked loose strands of her hair out of her face, grumbling, "Yeah, well I didn't get away unscathed either."

"Your highness," Joseph finally struggled to his feet and bowed stiffly and painfully. "Forgive us if we disturbed you. My daughter and I always start our day with a bit of training in hand-to-hand combat. It's quite relaxing."

Jafar raised an eyebrow and exchanged a skeptical glance with Iago, who replied loudly, "Quite relaxing! Quite relaxing!"

"Oh, how wonderful!" The sultan clapped his hands. "It was a stunning performance. Are you sure you aren't really hurt?" A bit of worry crept into his voice.

"Of course we—" Leona began bad-temperedly, but was cut off by her father.

"No, not at all," Joseph assured the sultan with a forced laugh, limping forward. "We're just a bit out of practice." He picked up his shirt, which he had thrown aside, and used it to wipe the sweat from his face.

"Well if that's the case, please feel free to practice any time you'd like. I am sure nobody would mind it."

Jafar glanced at the trampled, ripped up circle of grass that had once looked immaculate and green like the rest of the lawn.

"Nobody but the gardeners," Iago cackled softly.

"That doesn't concern us," Jafar replied, though he too looked slightly amused.

"Yes, Jafar?" The sultan had turned to look at him. "You were saying something?"

Wondering why the sultan only seemed to hear him when he was talking to Iago, Jafar sighed long-sufferingly and stated dryly, "Your majesty, might I suggest that you consider introducing the artisan to that little project of yours. I am sure he is dying to make himself useful, since he's already torn out the grass on his first day here."

Jafar's jibe did not go unnoticed by Joseph, but the sultan was either completely oblivious, or ignored it, merely exclaiming, "Oh, yes of course! Joseph, you must see it immediately. This project will certainly present a bit of a challenge to you, but I have faith in your skill."

"Wonderful, sire." Joseph inclined his head before adding tentatively, "Might I be allowed to clean up a bit first?"

"Yes, yes, of course. I shall wait here for your return." With that, the sultan sat down on a nearby bench, which just happened to be next to a small pond. He was delighted to find that there were more koi in this pond than in the fountain, and they kept him quite entertained.

While Joseph rushed back to his room, Leona stood quietly off to the side, shooting glances at the bird on Jafar's shoulder. She had already seen it the previous day, but she had felt too sick to pay close attention. Now that she had rested and changed into cooler clothing, the bird's bright red and blue feathers fascinated her, and she approached Jafar cautiously.

"Is that your bird?"

He merely raised an eyebrow and stared down at her with disdain. "Tell me, girl," he finally spoke, "do wild birds often perch on peoples' shoulders where you come from?"

She flushed with annoyance and glared at her feet. "So it is your bird," she replied.

"How astute." Jafar didn't know why he was even speaking to this girl. He glanced toward the sultan, who was chuckling gleefully as the fish nibbled his finger, and suddenly realized that it was because he had nothing better to do.

"Does it have a name?" Leona had come even nearer, holding out her hand to Iago, who eyed her with beady-eyed suspicion.

"Iago. And he isn't above biting stray fingers."

Leona's eyebrows shot up and she drew her hand away quickly. "Iago? That's an odd name."

Iago squawked irately at Leona, weaving back and forth on Jafar's shoulder.

"Don't get your feathers in a bunch," she replied firmly to Iago, who seemed taken aback that she would address him so directly. "I didn't say it wasn't a good name. I like it." The girl reached out to pat the bird's head and promptly got bitten.

"Ouch!" She retracted her hand and stuck her finger in her mouth, noticing that it was bleeding.

"My, you certainly have a way with dumb animals," Jafar commented with raised eyebrows and a bit of a smirk.

Both Leona and Iago shot glares at him.

Not a moment later, Joseph returned, a long blue robe pulled on over his breeches. It fit fairly tightly around his torso, but it flowed loosely from the waist down, and though the sleeves were long, they were loose as well.

"I am ready, your majesty, if you would like to show me what you would have me working on." Joseph bowed before the sultan.

"Oh wonderful," the sultan pulled himself away from the pond, hopping off of the bench and motioning for Joseph to follow him. "It's this way, if you'll just follow me." They made it a few steps before the sultan called back, "Jafar? Are you coming? You will, of course, be keeping track of Joseph's progress."

"It is my honor to serve you, my liege." Jafar turned away from Leona and fell into step with Joseph.

Watching their retreating backs, Leona was left standing all alone in the gardens. She could have followed them, but she knew she would be bored, and she wasn't keen on being too near the Grand Vizier. It still baffled her how quickly he could shift from being such a pompous, sarcastic man, to an obsequious, flattering toad.

Shrugging, Leona decided to explore the gardens and get a feel for the palace grounds. She was unsure how much time they would spend in Agrabah, and she wanted to be able to go somewhere without getting lost.

It was easy for her to forget her boredom as she wandered between rows of cypress trees and stared at the beautiful flowers that surrounded several fountains. Animals roamed the grounds freely, most of them birds with strangely colored plumes. Not one of them made the same noise as the next, and it fascinated Leona as she tried to match each call to the correct bird. She was just staring at one odd little bird with long brown feathers covering its hunched back when suddenly she noticed something was amiss. It took her a moment to put her finger on just what was wrong, but she finally realized that the conversational bird calls had stopped abruptly. Not a sound broke the glassy silence.

"What the—" Leona frowned and whirled around to see if she could spot what exactly had caused the sudden stillness.

At first there was nothing. The silence permeated around her, creeping in deceptively. Nothing stirred. And then, without warning, a high-pitched scream shattered the air. Leona jumped in shock, the bird behind her fluttered away, frightened. Around a pillar, whose architecture was actually rather intricate and complicated, if Leona had bothered to notice, raced a girl. She was a blur of orange with long black hair streaming loosely behind her, having come undone from its ties.

Leona did not have time to react as the girl barreled towards her at full speed. She stood with her mouth open, and barely heard the gasping, "Here, catch!" as the girl neared her. Leona obeyed, her hands coming automatically up as the girl tossed her something slimy and red. With an impressive dive, she then avoided Leona at the last possible second. Leona did not see where she went, preoccupied first by what was apparently a slab of thick, juicy, and disgustingly raw meat, and then abruptly noticing what the girl was being chased by. This second thing was also a blur of orange, though significantly bigger and more menacing. Leona cowered as it roared, opening gaping jaws, revealing teeth that could crush her skull easily.

It collided with her, sending her crashing to the ground, the meat flying. For a terrifying moment the monstrous thing snuffled at her, making small growling noises in its throat. Then, against all odds, it walked away, releasing her. Leona lay in stiff fright, watching out of the corner of her eye as the creature—it appeared to be a large striped cat—lumbered towards the fallen meat. It hunkered down and began to chew happily, having apparently completely forgotten about her.

"You weren't supposed to _give_ it to him!" cried a voice. Leona slowly sat up, and looked towards one of the trees. Dangling upside down from a branch hung the girl, scowling at her. Leona sighed and touched her face, still not quite believing she was in one piece.

The girl in the tree did a flip, bouncing down easily onto her feet. She flicked her tangled hair out of her face, approaching Leona. Now that Leona was not in danger of being mauled, she could examine her more easily.

She had dark olive skin that probably came from being outside often, as was obvious to Leona when she stared at the girl's dirty, calloused feet. Thirteen years of age at the most, the girl was short and gangly, with long tangled black hair and a wide grin. Leona noticed that she was missing one of her front teeth, which added to her impish appearance. Leona would have thought that she was an urchin who had somehow managed to get past the guards, except for her clothing, which was made out of fine orange silk that no commoner would have been able to afford. Her entire outfit comprised of a pair of long loose pants like those that the guards wore, as well as a fitted shirt with long flared sleeves.

"Who _are_ you?" Leona inquired warily.

The girl looked ready to reply, but another voice suddenly interrupted her.

"Najya! There you are! I can't believe you left me alone today!"

With wide eyes, the girl—apparently named Najya—grinned, "You mean you didn't want to have all those suitors to yourself?"

"Of course not!" The source of the other voice, another young woman, glowered at Najya. "You owe me one for fending them all off by myself!" She put her hands on her hips, flicking her long dark hair out of her face impatiently.

The girl seemed to think for a moment before grinning and holding up a finger. "I know, how 'bout I make you dinner?"

"And have you burn down the entire palace? I don't think so. Besides, we're eating with Father today."

"Are you sure? That means that Gramps will most likely be there too, and we all know that he ruins any fun. Besides, I make a mean flamingo stew."

Leona stared at them as if they were from another continent. She wasn't sure she understood exactly what language they were speaking, as it all seemed to be in code.

The young woman seemed appalled. "Those flamingos are for decoration!"

"It's really tasty," Najya cajoled the other girl.

"Absolutely not! You're horrible I hope you know."

"And you're ungrateful. I _offered_ to do something nice for you…" She shrugged and sighed, "Oh well. More stew for me." Najya turned as if to walk away, but the other girl stopped her.

"Wait! Najya, you can't make that stew!"

The younger girl stopped and turned slowly. "So let me get this straight. You _don't_ want me to make the stew?"

"Definitely not." The girl folded her arms firmly across her chest.

"So if I don't make it we'll be even?"

"Yes, alright."

"Neat! Seeya!" Najya grinned and hopped away, disappearing with surprising speed through the bushes.

"Um…" Leona finally spoke up, "You _do_ realize that she just got away without having to do a thing for you."

The other girl frowned and threw up her hands exasperatedly. "She _always _does that!" Groaning, she seemed deep in thought for a few moments before she realized that she had never seen Leona before. "Who are you?" She inquired.

"I'm the artisan's daughter, Leona."

"Oh, I heard my father talking about you. You're the one who fainted in the throne room yesterday."

Leona flushed, chagrined that the story had indeed been circulated. "Yeah."

"I'm Jasmine, by the way. The sultan's daughter."

"Nice to—" Leona suddenly stopped speaking. "You mean _you're_ the princess?"

"Yes. You look surprised."

"I—I just didn't expect you to be so…down to earth. Where I come from, the princess never goes outside, and she has servants do everything for her. And she most certainly doesn't chase around…" Leona frowned and asked, "Who was that girl, anyway?"

"You mean Najya?"

"Yes, her. The one who, ah, ran into me."

Jasmine squinted at her. "Oh?" she seemed to suddenly notice her disheveled appearance. "Oh! I'm sorry about that. I'm afraid she tends to. . ." she trailed off, suddenly distracted by the large striped monster, which approached her and nearly tipped her over by rubbing its bulk against her legs.

Leona had been surprised to be apologized to by royalty, but she was even more surprised when the princess reached down and lovingly scratched the creature between the ears. "What _is_ that?" she gaped.

"This is Rajah. He's a tiger. Haven't you ever seen one before?"

"No. I've never had one on top of me, either."

Jasmine smiled, embarrassed. "I expect that was Najya's fault? Eew, Rajah, you're drooling. What were you eating?"

"She was running away from him with a piece of meat, which she handed to me. Luckily he decided I wasn't a piece of meat, too. So, is that girl your sister or something?"

"Goodness, no! She's actually related to the vizier."

Leona gaped at her. "That horrible man with a beard that could put out somebody's eye?" she stopped, then quickly shut her mouth, realizing she had probably just inadvertently insulted royalty.

To her relief, the princess laughed. "In some ways, they are quite alike. And anyway, the relation is distant. He's supposed to be her caretaker, but I expect he just wants to strangle her instead."

Giggling, Leona shrugged, "I can kind of see why."

Jasmine smiled, "She's actually not that bad. You just have to get used to her."

"Oh, I wasn't talking about her. I expect that Jafar man to strangle anybody who crosses his path. Does your father actually _trust_ him with important affairs?"

"Apparently," Jasmine sighed. "I don't like him at all. He's…creepy."

Leona nodded vigorously, quite sure by that point in time that she had found a kindred spirit. She was fortunate enough that the princess seemed to have nothing to do for the rest of the day, so she got a tour of the palace grounds and was able to see much of the palace itself before dusk. Feeling a little less lost and out of place, Leona thanked Jasmine more than once over the course of the tour.

"You know," Jasmine pointed out after the seventh "thank you" she had received, "you don't have to keep thanking me. It isn't any trouble."

"I'm sure you have much more important things to do, though," Leona replied.

"Not really. My father seems to think that the only thing I'm good for is making a good marriage. He hasn't gotten horribly pushy about it yet, fortunately."

"But you can't possibly be more than sixteen!" Leona exclaimed.

"I just turned fifteen about a month ago. My father hopes to have me married off by my sixteenth birthday."

"So young?" Leona frowned. "Is that normal?"

Jasmine shrugged, "I suppose so. Why? How old are you?" She looked Leona over calculatingly.

"I turn twenty soon."

"You can't be serious!" It was Jasmine's turn to be shocked. "And you aren't married yet?"

"No. My father has an apprentice running the shop back home. I'm supposed to marry him when we return so that the business will stay in the family."

"Oh. That's awful."

Leona smiled bravely and shrugged, "Well, maybe I'm making it sound a bit worse than it really is. Besides, I have no idea how long we are staying here, so I might as well try to enjoy it." Her stomach suddenly growled loudly, and Leona looked down at it in shock, realizing that she hadn't eaten since that morning. "Oh dear," she laughed. "I suppose I should think about eating something."

Jasmine laughed as well. "Dinner will be served soon, I'm sure."

"You mean for you at least."

"What do you mean by that? You're dining with us. Didn't you know?"

"What?" Leona was taken aback.

"My father invited you and your father to eat with us tonight," Jasmine replied as if it was the most natural thing in the world.

"I need to change," was the first thing that came out of Leona's mouth.

Jasmine obliged Leona and took her back to her room, where the girl hurriedly ransacked her bags for something decent to wear. Unfortunately, the only dress she had brought along with her was her riding habit, which she doubted would do. She had expected to merely fade into the background, and perhaps help her father with his work, not dine with royalty. Finally, she settled on a simple pair of loosely fitted cotton breeches and a dark green blouse. Uncertain about whether to wear her boots or not, Leona decided against it, knowing that they would be hot and clunky and unpleasant to wear. Besides, who would bother looking at her feet?

Stepping outside of her room, Leona realized that she did not know where dinner would be served, and she was quite grateful to see that Jasmine had waited for her. She noticed with relief that the princess was still wearing her long loose breeches, though they certainly looked much better than Leona's.

"Those are strange clothes," Jasmine pointed out as she started off down the hallway. "Do your people often wear things like that?"

"Sometimes," Leona stated uncomfortably, wondering if she should have gambled on the riding habit instead.

"Are they comfortable?"

"Yes, fairly." Leona waited for the princess to say something else, but she merely shrugged and continued walking.

"The dining hall is just through here," Jasmine finally said as they approached a large set of elaborate blue doors. She opened one holding it for Leona, who walked through it with great hesitation, not knowing what she would see inside.

"There's nobody here," Leona noted with mild surprise, not knowing whether to be relieved or worried.

"Oh, we must be early." Jasmine came up from behind Leona and walked toward the middle of the room, where a low stone table sat, surrounded by large, multicolored cushions.

Leona watched as the princess chose a particularly fat blue cushion and sat down on it before she approached and followed suit.

"Oh, don't sit there," Jasmine stated before Leona could sit.

"Why? Is this somebody else's seat?" Leona shot up, wondering awkwardly how she would survive the night without offending somebody.

"No. But you should sit by me so that I have at least one interesting person to talk to."

"Who else is coming?" Leona inquired as she sat down.

"My father, your father, Jafar, and possibly Najya as well," Jasmine counted off the guests.

"Really? That's it?"

"Yes. We usually eat in small numbers."

"Oh. How odd." Leona frowned, unsure how she should feel about this.

"Don't worry. Dinner is quite informal." Jasmine giggled slightly and added, "You'll see."

Fortunately it wasn't long before others arrived, Joseph being the next to enter. He looked a sight, the front of his blue robe wrinkled and dusted with white powder, a few strands of his hair escaping his tight knot. Leona suddenly didn't feel so bad about her outfit.

"Leona!" Joseph exhaled sharply as he plopped down on a cushion across the table from Leona, a layer of the white dust sloughing off his shoulders as he did so. "How was your day?" Now that he was at such a close range, Leona noticed that his face was covered in the same powder, which seemed to have mingled with his sweat and created a sticky white paste that stuck to his skin.

"Fine," Leona shrugged. "I see you've already started working. What is that?"

"Oh, this?" He plucked at the front of his robe, staring down at the white chalky powder on it and trying to brush some of it off, which created a cloud of dust around him. "Sorry. It must be residue from the marble I was working on. The sultan wanted me to renew some of the stonework in the old part of the palace. I really shouldn't have left my apron back home."

Jasmine bit her bottom lip in an effort not to laugh.

Joseph seemed to notice her for the first time, and he looked at Leona, murmuring in a pleased voice, "I see you've managed to make a new friend."

"So nice to meet you," Jasmine said as she offered him her hand in greeting, her voice wavering on the border of laughing. "I'm Jasmine."

"The princess?" Obviously Joseph had already heard about her. "It is an honor to meet you." He began to reach out with his hand, but thought better of it when he saw it was covered in the same white paste, chuckling, "Please forgive me. I tried to wash up a bit, but, as you can see, I ran out of water."

Grinning, Jasmine choked out, "I am sure one of the servants would be more than happy to bring you some fresh water."

Leona had not noticed it before, but she suddenly realized that there were several servants standing in discrete locations around the room as one of them immediately jumped into motion and disappeared. The man returned with a wide bowl filled to the brim with cool clear water, and Joseph thanked him warmly as he placed it on the table.

"Ahhh," Joseph sighed as he sunk his hands into the water, which turned a strange shade of milky white as he rubbed his hands gently together. "That's much better."

The servant offered him a small, dry towel, which Joseph used to wipe his hands and his face before he handed both the towel and the bowl back to the servant with a smile.

"Thank you, very much," he inclined his head.

The man nodded in return before retreating from the room.

"So," Joseph turned back to Leona, "Why don't you tell me about—"

He was instantly interrupted by the next man to enter the room, the door bursting open with a loud clang. It was Jafar. "Artisan!" The Grand Vizier addressed Joseph in a condescending tone as he approached. Fortunately his annoying bird was not present. Leona was still not sure she could forgive the spiteful creature for biting her finger earlier.

Joseph flinched slightly, a glower on his face. "Yes, Jafar?"

"I was just visiting the east wing and found the corridor littered with debris. I hope you don't intend to leave your workplace so disorganized in the future?"

"That part of the palace has been in disuse for some time," Joseph began. "I assure you, no work of mine could have created such a mess in a single day."

The scowl that darkened Jafar's face probably would have killed any other man less tenacious than Joseph. As it was, the artisan still winced. "I suggest that you have it cleaned up by this time tomorrow. I will not have such unsightliness mar this palace."

"Of course," Joseph replied through gritted teeth, gazing downward in a show of submission.

Leona, by this point in the conversation, was glaring at Jafar, who had taken a seat on Joseph's left, next to the head of the table. She noticed that Jasmine did not look pleased either, especially not when a red streak came flying in through a window, landing on Jafar's shoulder and eyeing its surroundings with beady black eyes. Iago.

A slight smile playing on his thin lips, Jafar eyed Leona first and then Jasmine, finally lifting a single eyebrow and murmuring, "Why, princess, I was unaware that you were already here. Where is that big brute of yours? I thought it was quite impossible for that creature to leave your side." He absently stroked Iago's head with a single long finger as he spoke, a smug smile on his face.

"_Rajah_ is in the gardens. He probably thinks the atmosphere here is too stuffy, and at the moment, I quite agree with him."

Jafar opened his mouth to retort, but it was his turn to be interrupted by the slamming of the door.

"Oh wonderful! Everybody is already here," the sultan exclaimed as he entered the room, trotting toward the table and sitting at the head of it. He beamed at the motley gathering around the table before clapping his hands together and stating, "Well, I hope nobody minds if we simply begin the meal now?"

"What about Najya, Father?" Jasmine inquired.

"I'm sure she won't be joining us tonight," Jafar cut in before the sultan could reply.

"How can you be so sure?" Jasmine glared at him. "She could just be running behind."

"She was swimming in the fountain less than an hour ago. I assure you that she does not intend to join us," Jafar replied with a scowl. He was obviously none too fond of the girl.

"Well then, might I assume we are ready?" The sultan looked carefully around the table, waiting for an objection. When there were none, he nodded satisfactorily and gestured slightly with a single hand.

Servants immediately swarmed the table, bearing trays filled with strange, exotic foods that smelled better than ambrosia to Leona. She was fascinated by the array of food, and found it difficult to choose where to start. The sultan seemed to be sampling a little bit of everything, while Jasmine filled her plate with only some sort of white meat and an assortment of fruit. Jafar hardly took anything, and what he did take he passed on to Iago with a bland expression. Joseph, on the other hand, seemed just as lost as Leona, though he was brave enough to try a strange greenish paste that looked as if it was supposed to be spread on pieces of round, flat bread. The face he made when he tasted it was quite amusing, though Leona and Jasmine were the only two who noticed it.

Seeing that Leona had not put anything on her plate yet, Jasmine kindly pointed out a few things that were safe to eat, and others that Leona probably wouldn't like. She found that she quite liked the flat bread, especially after topping it with a white meat that looked something like chicken, but tasted richer than any chicken she had ever had. Leona was about to try a piece of an odd looking green fruit when she suddenly heard a faint noise echo in the dining hall.

It caught the attention of everybody else as well, and they all froze for a brief moment, straining to hear if the noise would repeat itself. Frowning, Leona heard it again, an unearthly wailing sound, accompanied by a strange, rapid clicking that seemed to be increasing in volume. Or decreasing in distance from the room.

The door, which had been closed again after the sultan entered, suddenly burst open, and in rushed the orange streak that could only be Najya, who was the source of the wailing. She was closely followed by Rajah, whose unsheathed claws clicked on the marble floor. The big cat had no difficulty pouncing on Najya and knocking her flat on her back in the middle of the large room. Leona was quite sure that she had looked similarly silly previously that day when Rajah had flattened her, although it was much funnier to observe than to experience.

"Get offa me, you big lummox! I don't have any steak!" Najya cried, wriggling out from underneath the tiger, pushing it away with her bare feet.

Leona noticed with shock that the girl was soaking wet, as well as Rajah, and that they were both muddy up to the knees.

"Najya!" Jafar exclaimed with absolutely no surprise, but plenty of irritation.

"Sorry, Gramps," the girl replied calmly as she stood up, ignoring the pathetic pleas of the tiger, which was still sniffing her for any hint of meat. "I didn't mean to intrude on everybody's fancy dinner." She looked at Jasmine with mischief twinkling in her eyes and added, "But really, Jasmine, you should keep a closer eye on your tiger. He's becoming a bit of a nuisance." Najya pushed Rajah's muzzle away firmly. "No, go away," she ordered. Surprisingly, the tiger turned around and flopped down on its stomach, its tail twitching boredly on the smooth floor.

"Well if you wouldn't tease him with meat all the time—" Jasmine began with indignation, though it was obvious that she was enjoying herself.

"Hey!" Najya interrupted, pointing at Joseph, who was still covered in white dust. "Who let him play in the flour? That's not fair!"

"Najya!" By this point Jafar had gotten to his feet, another nasty scowl on his face. "You will either sit down and be silent now, or leave the room."

Najya shrugged. "Whatever, Gramps." She sighed loudly and approached, taking a seat on Leona's other side.

"Will you stop calling me that?" Jafar hissed as he sat back down.

"Forgive me, oh Uncle's-Second-Cousin-Once-Removed," Najya replied, rolling her eyes as she proceeded to snatch at every nearby item of food within her reach, piling her plate high.

"You _were_ once removed," Jafar glowered at her, "But somehow you managed to find your way back."

"Oh, haha," Najya yawned. "I see you haven't done anything about that questionable sense of humor you have."

By now, everybody's attention was focused either on Jafar or Najya, but it was solely in amusement and not shock. This seemed to be a common occurrence in the palace.

"I'll show you _questionable_," Jafar growled.

"You know," the girl stated in a bored voice, "I can't quite tell which one's more twisted, your brain or your beard."

"And I can't quite tell which is fouler, your mouth or your stench. When did you last bathe?"

"Today." Najya shrugged, completely unaffected by the fact that her hygiene had been questioned in front of an audience.

"The fountain doesn't count."

"Hmmm…" She tapped her chin in a show of thinking. "Then I guess it was last week."

Leona, who had been having a difficult time keeping herself from laughing, suddenly burst into a fit of giggles, which were accompanied by a loud snort. A glare from Jafar silenced her quickly, but it had already drawn Najya's attention.

"Hey, you're the pushover I saw in the gardens today. I never got to introduce myself." She held out a damp hand to Leona, stating, "I'm Najya."

"I figured," Leona replied with a smile, taking the girl's hand and shaking it firmly, despite the fact that it smelled a bit like fish. "I'm Leona."

"Nice to meet you. Sorry if I startled you earlier today." Najya shrugged and stuffed a wad of grapes in her mouth, not caring when one burst and sent a stream of juice squirting over the table. "Whoops," she muttered through her full mouth.

Leona heard a low groan from Jafar, but the man seemed to have given up on reprimanding Najya for the time being, turning his attention to the sultan, who seemed to be reminiscing on his childhood.

"Hey," Najya tapped Leona on the shoulder. "Check this out."

Leona watched with fascination as Najya shoved a handful of small green peas into her mouth, maneuvering one into the gap where she was missing a tooth. The girl inhaled deeply before suddenly shooting air through her mouth and propelling the pea across the table, where it struck Iago's beak.

The bird turned her way and squawked loudly, only to be squawked at by Najya in return. Jafar shot a warning look at her, and was rewarded by a pea in the eye.

"My goodness," the sultan stated curiously as a pea bounced off the front of his turban, "we seem to be under attack by flying peas."

"That's not the only thing that will be flying in a moment," Jafar threatened, deflecting another barrage of peas with his empty plate.

"Perhaps," the sultan suggested in a slightly raised voice, having to stand up to be heard, "we should adjourn to the sitting room for coffee?"

"Quite a good idea, your highness," Jafar agreed, peering over the edge of his plate to make sure that Najya was out of peas.

"For once," Iago muttered in a low voice.

"Well _I'm_ going back out to the gardens," Najya exclaimed through a mouthful of chicken.

"Yes, I think I'd prefer some time to myself," Jasmine stated thoughtfully.

"I…just don't want to be here," Leona admitted with a sheepish look on her face.

"Hmm…" Jafar's eyes narrowed as he stared at the three girls, suspicious that they might be up to something.

Leona wasn't sure what the other two were thinking of doing, but she had plans to go to her room and wash up before going to bed early. Her bare feet were sore from all the walking she had done, and the back of her head still hurt from hitting it on the ground that morning. Surprisingly, she was the first to disappear from the room, Jasmine and Najya taking their time in exiting.

"Najya—" Jafar called to the girl, catching up to her before she could follow Leona's lead and vanish. "—a word before you go."

"Great," she grumbled, folding her arms across her chest and turning to face the tall, lean man. "What?"

"In private, please," he stated, ushering her out of the room with a firm hand on her shoulder.

"I don't want to talk to you, Gramps. Can't it wait?" The girl sulked, looking longingly back over her shoulder as Jafar led her away from the gardens and toward her room.

He glowered down at her, but waited until they had entered her chambers before saying anything more. Sitting her down forcefully, the man paced in front of her for a few moments before finally speaking.

"You've been troublesome and ill-mannered since you arrived here, Najya—"

"We've been over this already," Najya groaned and flopped backward on the divan, staring boredly at the ceiling and kicking her legs absently.

"Yes, I know that." Jafar snapped impatiently, continuing, "But you've been exceedingly difficult these past few days. What is the matter with you?"

"Maybe _I'm_ not the one with the problem," Najya retorted. "Don't think I haven't noticed you sending that bumble-headed Razoul oaf to follow me."

"He was supposed to see to it that no harm came to you—" Jafar began, but Najya interrupted.

"Like you care about what happens to me! I've heard what you say when you don't think I'm listening. Besides, when I want to go somewhere alone, I make sure I'm alone." The young girl sat up and scrunched her face up in a nasty frown, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Najya—" Jafar's tone was growing darker by the moment, and his knuckles were white from the tightness with which he gripped his staff.

She whirled away from him, pouting. "Go away. I already know you think I'm useless. And I think you're just a grumpy old man with a stick up your—"

"Young lady! When I find out where you learned such despicable behavior—" Jafar hissed threateningly, making a grab at her arm.

Najya was too fast. She dodged and dashed out of reach, hardly looking back as she ran for the window and leapt through it, racing away through the gardens and disappearing.

"Geez, what a little monster! What relative of yours spawned that thing?" Iago ruffled his feathers indignantly, weaving back and forth in annoyance.

Jafar's eyebrows fell low over his eyes, and he stared bad-temperedly through the window. "She wasn't supposed to be this difficult to care for."

Iago let out a loud, screechy cackle, "Admit it, Jafar, you never cared about anyone. The only reason you agreed to take her in was to use her for information. Now we see how well that worked."

"Shut up," the man growled in warning. "I'll see that she turns out exactly as she should. One way or another," he added, casting a sidelong glance at the head of his staff.

"What? The creepy hypnotic thing you do? That'll never work on her. She's too stubborn."

"We'll see. I have my ways, Iago." Jafar stroked his crooked beard thoughtfully, letting a small smile pass over his face. "Besides, we have _new_ guests to befriend as well. I'm sure with their help I can mold things to my liking."

"You mean the hard-headed artisan and his mushy-brained daughter? That man's as difficult to work with as his rocks, and the girl looks like she'd run away at the first sight of trouble," Iago scoffed scornfully.

"Don't underestimate the girl. You saw them fighting this morning. And the artisan would do _anything_ for his daughter." Jafar smiled predatorily.

"So what're you thinking, Jafar?" Iago inquired curiously. "I can tell something's going on in that warped head of yours."

"You'll see, Iago. For now I want you to follow the girl. Befriend her if you have to. I'll take care of the artisan. I want to know all I can about these foreigners."

The bird could only imagine what it was that Jafar was up to, but he knew one thing for sure: he wanted in on it.


	3. Day Three

_Alright, thanks to caffeine, candy, and cheddar cheese Pringles, here is Chapter Three in all its "glory." Hope you enjoy! Reading is nice, reviewing is better! XD_

Chapter 3

Leona wanted to see the marketplace. She had caught a glimpse of it with her father on their first day in Agrabah, but her discomfort in the heat had kept her from paying very close attention. She longed to go back and explore in more normal attire. When she approached her father about it, however, he adamantly refused.

"I promise I will go with you when I'm not so busy," he said. He was pacing underneath an archway, calling out orders to a group of workers who were building in temporary support so he could replace one of the pillars.

"When are you not going to be busy?" Leona complained, dodging as mortar showered down from above.

Joseph waved a hand vaguely, brushing loose debris from atop his head. "I won't be able to work on these outside parts if it rains."

Leona stared at the hot sun and clear sky skeptically. "That'll never happen," she grouched. "Why can't I just go by myself?"

Joseph cast her a stern look. "You know I don't like you to wander around without an escort. Especially in strange places. We don't know Agrabah's customs, and I worry for you."

"I would be careful," she pleaded.

"Absolutely not. Go find something else to do. I hear there's a library somewhere in the north wing."

Leona crossed her arms, scowling. "I can't read the language here. It's all these strange symbols. . ." she trailed off, realizing Joseph wasn't listening anymore. She sighed and walked away, dragging her feet in boredom.

Everything in the palace grounds seemed exactly the same as it had the day before. Well, barring the fact that Najya seemed to be confined to her room for causing such a stir last night. What a day to be grounded on, Leona thought with disappointment. She wondered vaguely in the back of her mind how Jafar planned to keep her locked up in her room. Najya did not seem like the sort of child who could stay confined for long.

It was a hot, unpleasant day, one that just made Leona wish she could lie inside and doze in a patch of shade. Unfortunately she had already tried that and actually fallen asleep, not waking until her shade had disappeared and the sun began to burn her skin. One of her shoulders and an entire side of her face was now bright red and stung painfully.

Sighing, she gazed longingly at the cool blue pools of water that were scattered about the gardens, wishing she was brave enough to even dip just her feet in one of them. But she was still afraid of accidentally offending somebody and getting into a lot of trouble. So she refrained. Instead, Leona boredly wandered the gardens, hoping to find something that might distract her, even if it was for a brief moment.

She was almost ready to give up in her efforts to entertain herself and go back to pester her father when a blur of orange—a very _loud_ blur of orange—blew by her. If Leona had any doubts about who it had been, they were quelled as the figure called back:

"YOU DIDN'T SEE ME!"

Frowning in confusion, Leona wondered what Najya had meant by that for only a moment before a shadow fell over her. She turned to face a livid, scowling Jafar, who looked quite out of sorts and a bit disheveled, as though he had been running.

"Where did she go?" He hissed, diving in on Leona like a hawk.

Strangely enough, Leona was not intimidated. She had, after all, hoped for something interesting to happen, and at the moment she felt more than a little irritable. Shrugging, she replied, "Who?"

"You know very well who." The man frowned at Leona when he realized that she looked completely at ease. Jafar decided that he needed to be clearer, and he spoke with venomous clarity, "_Najya_. Which way did she go, girl?"

Again, Leona shrugged. "I didn't see her. Why do you ask?"

"You didn't—" he cut himself short, staring at Leona as if he was trying to decide whether to be angry or astounded at her stupidity. Nobody crossed him. "You had better not be lying, girl."

The young woman paled a bit, but she stood her ground. "I'm not scared of you, Jafar, and I already told you that I didn't see Najya. Might I suggest, however, that the next time you require somebody's assistance, you try employing some manners?" Leona surprised even herself with her forwardness, and Jafar looked completely taken aback.

His shock lasted only a moment, however, and he reached out with snakelike speed, taking Leona's jaw firmly in one hand, spitting back, "Watch that tongue of yours, girl. I would enjoy cutting it from your mouth entirely too much."

"Shouldn't you be chasing Najya still?" Leona's voice echoed with irritation as she tore herself out of Jafar's grasp.

The man glared acerbically at her, only distracted as Iago descended from somewhere above them and landed on Jafar's shoulder. The bird crossed behind the man's head, disappearing for a few moments behind his turban before reappearing on the other side. Jafar's eyes narrowed suddenly, and he took a step toward Leona, looking as if he was ready to murder her then and there.

"Look, why don't you just get your bird to chase her?" Leona held up her hands in front of her and backed away, deciding that now wasn't a good time to bait the vizier.

Showing amazing self-restraint, Jafar retreated a bit, eyeing Leona calculatingly for a brief moment before he spoke. "Iago would only slow me down." He seemed to think for a minute, his anger evaporating, replaced by a sly expression. "You've shown interest in him before, girl. How would you like to keep an eye on him for the rest of the afternoon?"

"You want me to watch your bird?" Leona was a little stunned. She had been under the impression that the man was going to kill her.

Jafar shrugged and turned away, "Well, if you aren't interested—"

"Wait," Leona replied hastily, realizing that this was an opportunity for her to ease the mind-numbing boredom that plagued her. "He won't bite again, will he?"

"That is entirely up to you, my dear." Jafar smiled silkily and glanced at Iago, who stared back with blank black eyes.

"Well…" She still hesitated a bit, eying Iago suspiciously.

"Make up your mind, girl." Jafar snapped impatiently. "Some of us actually have business to attend to today."

"Alright," Leona replied. "I'll do it."

The man smiled again, raising an eyebrow and lifting his hand up to his shoulder, holding it out like a perch. Iago obediently hopped onto it, cocking his head at Leona as Jafar carefully handed the bird toward her. Reaching out with wary caution, Leona touched the man's hand with hers, waiting for Iago to step onto her wrist. His talons were somewhat sharp on her bare arm, especially as he began to climb farther up, nipping her ear sharply with his beak as soon as he had settled on her shoulder.

"Ow! That is not acceptable, you foul little—" Leona trailed off, realizing that Jafar was still watching her, but that didn't keep her from glaring at the bird, who squawked back in her ear. She heard Jafar chuckle slightly as she stated firmly to Iago's face, "You behave, bird."

"Iago," Jafar addressed the bird authoritatively, "_behave_." He and Iago exchanged a silent look before he glanced Leona's way and nodded his head ever so slightly. "Now, I really must be going."

Leona didn't have time to say anything before the man disappeared through a hedge, chasing Najya. She looked at Iago, noticing that he seemed to be glaring right back at her. "Alright, bird, it looks like it's just you and me now." Flopping down on a nearby bench, Leona sighed, "So now what?"

"What to do! What to do!" Iago screeched in her ear.

"Do you mind? Tone it down a bit," she complained, her ear ringing.

Iago bobbed his head up and down, looking pleased with himself.

"Geez, you're such an awful bird. How does Jafar stand you?" Leona shrugged, "Well, it doesn't matter." She paused before inquiring, "Are you hungry at all?"

The bird cocked his head curiously.

"I only ask because I've got a few of those strange dried fruits saved from last night. Apricots, I think Jasmine called them." She rifled in one of her pockets, pulling out a handful of the wrinkled orange fruit.

Iago was quite interested by then, clawing his way carefully down her arm and picking the fruit from her hand. They were quickly depleted, and as he finished the last one, Iago ruffled his feathers and let out a wheedling kind of whine that seemed to mean that he was satisfied. Making his way back up to Leona's shoulder, the bird plopped down comfortably, a small, warm weight for Leona to carry.

"So you _can_ be bribed with food," Leona smiled. "Don't worry, I won't tell anybody." She reached out carefully and tentatively patted the bird's head. For the first time, he actually submitted to it, although he didn't seem overly pleased.

Feeling satisfied with her efforts at befriending the bird, Leona glanced around, still wishing she could visit the marketplace. "You wouldn't happen to know of anybody who'd be willing to escort me around the marketplace, would you?" She asked offhandedly, not expecting much of an answer from the bird.

"Willing to escort!" Iago repeated.

Leona laughed softly, "I'm sure you are." She suddenly frowned thoughtfully and stared at Iago, her mind whirring into action. "Hold on...do you think—?" A peal of laughter escaped her mouth, and she clapped her hands together happily. "I do believe it's time to pay a visit to the marketplace today, bird."

As Leona made her way toward the palace wall, she pondered on the brilliance of her idea. True, Iago was not exactly what her father would consider a real 'escort,' but she was sure she could take care of herself, so having an escort was really just a formality. Besides, the bird could talk somewhat, even if all he did was parrot things he heard. If she got into real trouble, she could always send him back to the palace to fetch help.

Still, despite the fact that Leona thought her idea was clever, she opted to avoid the gate, which was constantly guarded by at least two of the palace guards, and instead decided to vault over the wall itself. It was lined with trees in several places; twisted, gnarled olives trees that were perfect for climbing. Picking the perfect tree only took a matter of minutes, and she made sure to send Iago up to the wall first before she began climbing.

Leona was used to tree-climbing, though the specimens in Porthaven had been quite a bit larger and more vertical. Scrambling along one branch that ran near the wall, Leona stood up on her precarious perch and reached toward the top of the wall, which she could almost reach. Frowning, she braced herself and clenched her fists briefly before digging her feet into the branch and leaping toward the wall. She caught hold of it with both arms, clinging to it as she pulled herself up.

Iago, who was already sitting on the wall, looked down at her with interest, watching as Leona finally managed to clamber up. She sat straddling the wall for a moment, her hands scratched and bleeding a bit, before swinging both legs over the other side and leaping down. Summing up her surroundings, Leona noticed that she was in a tight alleyway, the tall buildings coming flush up to the palace wall. All the better for disappearing before somebody noticed she was gone.

"Come on then!" Leona called to Iago, waving him toward her.

Eyeing her suspiciously, the bird weaved from side to side before finally flapping his wings and sailing down to perch on her shoulder.

"Rawrk! Come on then!" Iago squawked back in her ear.

"Cut that out," Leona muttered, about to reprimand the bird when she suddenly heard a loud shriek.

"Look out below!"

Her gaze shooting upward, Leona only saw a brief flash of orange before she was flat in the dirt, paralyzed beneath Najya.

"You know," the girl commented absently, combing her loose hair out of her eyes, "usually when I shout that, people move and then look up."

"Yeah, I'll remember to do that next time," Leona replied breathlessly, hoping nothing was broken.

"Hey! What are you doing sneaking out?" The young girl inquired suspiciously of Leona as soon as she recognized her.

"Um, I think I could ask the same of you," Leona gasped, trying to get up from under Najya.

"Oh, sorry," Najya leapt off of Leona, offering her a hand up.

"No problem," Leona shrugged, running a hand through her hair and trying to brush out all the dirt. She suddenly remembered Iago and looked around worriedly, wondering what Jafar would do to her if he realized she had lost his bird while sneaking out of the palace. Her brilliant idea was already beginning to seem ill-advised.

A sigh of great relief passed through her lips when she caught sight of Iago, fluttering over a nearby awning in the alley, squawking bad-temperedly at the sight of Najya.

"Hey, bird!" Leona reached out with her hands, trying to coax Iago down.

"Augh!" Najya shrieked loudly. "What is that _thing_ doing here? Quick!" She leapt up and made an attempt to shoo the bird away. "Go away, you dumb bird! And don't you dare tell Gramps you spotted me!"

"Najya!" Leona exclaimed, pulling the girl back. "Don't scare him away!"

Najya immediately turned on Leona. "Why not? Did Gramps send you out to find me too?"

"No!" Leona shook her head fervently. "I'm just watching the bird for him!" She looked back up to Iago and held out her hand. "Please come down, Iago," she pleaded. "I'll get you a treat, I promise!"

"You're watching the bird? He can take care of himself just fine," Najya grumbled, but didn't get in the way as Leona finally got Iago to calm down and perch on her shoulder again.

"Look, Jafar just asked me if I wanted to watch the bird, okay?"

"You know Gramps just wants him to spy on you, don't you?" Najya stated with a suspicious glare at Iago. Leona could see a faint familial resemblance to Jafar when Najya glowered at the bird.

"How can he spy on me? It's not like he can tell anybody anything."

Najya stared at Leona for a few moments before she suddenly burst out into raucous laughter.

"What?" Leona questioned with irritation, glancing between Najya and Iago, who looked very uncomfortable at the moment.

"If you don't know, I'm not going to tell you," Najya laughed. She stopped for a moment and looked with complete gravity at Iago. "I'm warning you, though, if you even _hint_ at _anything_ to Jafar, I'll pluck all your feathers out and hang you from the kitchen ceiling with all the other chickens. Got it?"

"Got it! Got it!" Iago repeated.

"Good," Najya turned away and began to make her way out of the narrow alley. "So," she called back to Leona, "What _are_ you doing outside of the palace without an escort?"

"Just exploring." Leona shrugged and followed the girl, realizing that Najya still seemed to want her to follow her.

"Really? Are you off your nut, going alone? It's a good thing I came along. You have to know all the right places to go, and it's easy to get lost. So, did you have anywhere in particular that you wanted to visit?"

"No," Leona replied. "I was just bored."

Najya turned to stare at Leona. "Are you sure you aren't off your nut? Usually people have a better reason for sneaking out. Especially with the consequences if you get caught."

"Consequences?" Leona gulped.

By this point they had exited the empty alleyway and were walking down a broad, busy thoroughfare, the sun beating down with all its searing heat. Leona wasn't sure she liked the sweaty, loud bustle of constantly moving people, but she was too intent on trying to keep up with Najya to really make up her mind.

"Yeah. I'm sure Jafar would have you beheaded if he found out you snuck out with his bird," Najya commented offhandedly, swiping an apple from a nearby stall and biting into it.

"Beheaded?" Leona gulped, glancing at Iago, who had cocked his head curiously and was staring at Najya's apple.

"Hey!" A broad man appeared from behind the stall, staring down at Najya with death in his eyes. "You had better be able to pay for that."

"Um..." Najya smiled innocently and turned out her pockets, all of which were empty, "I seem to be out of money at this current point in time—" She glanced at Leona with a cunning expression on her face, continuing, "—perhaps my friend here can help you."

"What?" Leona exclaimed, balking under the large man's glare.

"Well?" He held out his hand expectantly.

"I—er—" Rifling through her pockets, Leona was relieved to find that she still had a few silver and copper coins from Porthaven. "Will this work?"

"What's this?" The man snatched one of the silver coins from her palm, staring bad-temperedly at it.

"It's a _rezan_." Seeing that he obviously didn't know what Leona was talking about, she explained hurriedly, "Forgive me, but I'm a foreigner, and I haven't had a chance to trade—" The man's expression only got darker, so Leona changed tactics. "I promise that's real silver. It has value."

"Real silver!" Iago squawked, catching the man's attention.

Glaring suspiciously at her for what seemed an eternity, the man finally grunted, "Alright, give me the coin and the bird and I'll let you off."

Leona choked, "W-what?" She could only imagine the look on Jafar's face when he heard she had traded away his bird. It spurred a panic in her that made her sick to her stomach. "I—I can't give you the bird," she stuttered. "Here," she shoved the rest of the coins into the man's hands, "take these too. That's more than enough."

"It's the bird or your hand, you little rat!" The man bellowed, brandishing a large, gleaming saber in front of her face, grabbing her arm in a vice-like grip. If she hadn't been so worried for the safety of her hand, Leona would have noticed that they had drawn a crowd by then. As it was, Najya seemed to decide it was time to come to Leona's assistance.

"Hey!" Najya interrupted, stepping between Leona and the apple vendor with a haughty look on her face. "I'm not sure you heard her correctly. She can't give you the bird."

"Oh? And why not, girl? You're the one who started this."

"Girl?" Najya spat back viciously. "_I_, my good sir, am the sole remaining family of his royal highness's Grand Vizier. I trust you've heard of him?"

The man laughed, "Ha! The Grand Vizier? He would be offended to even hear a gutter snipe like you speak his name."

"Oh really?" Najya reached into an obscure pocket somewhere halfway down her pants and pulled out a large gold ring with some sort of fancy insignia imprinted on it. "How's this for proof?"

Peering closely at the ring, the man suddenly blanched, his demeanor changing almost immediately. "Forgive me, madam. I was unaware—"

"You are forgiven," Najya stated in an arrogant tone, waving her hand boredly in his face.

"I still need to be reimbursed for that apple," the man spoke up timidly. Leona had to admit that she admired his tenacity.

"My friend's coins will not satisfy you?" Najya inquired dangerously.

The man gulped, looking as if he didn't know what to say. Leona could see him battling it out in his head, wondering just what he could get out of Najya.

"Look, keep the ring too," the girl stated with disdain. "It will be a souvenir to remind you of the day you nearly lost your head."

That seemed to end the man's conflict. He bowed deeply and thanked Najya with great humility, remaining on his knees until long after the girl had grabbed Leona by the sleeve and dragged her out of sight.

"Hey," Najya struck Leona with a friendly punch in the shoulder as soon as they had turned onto a new street, "thanks for the apple."

Leona, still pale and shaking, shrugged and replied weakly, "No problem." She waited for a few moments to gain some of her color back before adding, "Sorry you had to give up that family ring of yours."

"What, this ring?" Najya pulled the ring from her pocket, grinning. "It's not really a family ring or anything. I just found it on a table in Gramps' room a few days ago. I'm still kind of fond of it, though." She polished it lovingly with the hem of her shirt before dropping it back into her pocket. "I think I'll hang onto it a bit longer."

"I thought you gave it to that man! Won't he notice that he doesn't have it?" Leona inquired worriedly.

"Nah. By the time he does we'll be long gone."

Leona could only hope that Najya was right. They continued walking in companionable silence after that, Leona preoccupied by all the sights and smells that permeated the atmosphere, and Najya engrossed by the contents of passerby's pockets.

"Hey," Najya finally spoke up, flipping a coin from hand to hand. "Why don't we find you some decent clothes?"

"What?" Leona frowned and glanced at Najya. "I _have_ clothes. Besides, you don't have any money on you, and I gave away all the rest of mine."

Najya grinned, tossing the coin to Leona. "I've got my ways. Come on; let's redistribute some wealth, huh?"

Leona didn't have much of a choice, as was apparent when Najya grabbed her by the wrist and dragged her toward a nearby stall that was filled with all sorts of bright silks and satins.

"There's no way I can take any of this," Leona protested as Najya began to pick through the clothing, tossing a few blues and greens her way.

"It's not a problem," Najya replied, brushing off Leona like a gnat and then piling on some more clothes. "There!" She finally exclaimed. "I think that should do it. Now you'll finally have a decent wardrobe. Some loose pants for more active stuff, a couple of gowns, mostly so you don't stick out so grossly. I'm amazed you haven't died of heat stroke yet."

"Ah, thanks," Leona muttered, wondering what Najya would have thought of her heavy fur travelling cloak.

"Here, try these slippers on too. They're better than whatever it is that you've got on your feet now, and they'll keep your feet from burning when it's hot out like this."

Finally, after several other suggestions from Najya, they were able to leave the stall, and a very pleased saleswoman, behind, Leona now carrying several packages.

"We're going back to the palace soon, right?" Leona inquired from behind a stack of paper-wrapped bundles of clothing.

"Of course," Najya waved her hand dismissively. "It's going to be interesting to see you sneak back over that wall," she laughed.

"Are you serious?" Leona just about dropped every one of those packages. "There's no way!"

Najya's laughter only increased. "Don't worry, I was kidding. We can go through the gate this time."

This idea did not appeal to Leona either. "But the guards will spot us!"

"So? They don't know we're not supposed to be out."

"But how will we explain the bird?" Leona jerked her head at Iago, who was perched passively, if a bit bad-temperedly, on her shoulder.

"Stop worrying," Najya replied. "I'll handle everything. Now hush; we're almost there."

Sure enough, the palace wall loomed nearer, casting its shadow over them as they approached it.

"Halt," one of the sentries ordered, stepping forward and eyeing the two girls suspiciously. "State your business, please."

"We live here, you twit," Najya answered impatiently. "Don't you recognize me?" She paused, and after a moment of silence sighed, "I'm the Grand Vizier's cousin. _Distant_ cousin, of course. And this is artisan Sutherland's daughter." She indicated Leona with a wave of her hand.

"Of course," the guard bowed slightly. "Forgive me for not—" He suddenly frowned and stood up straight, barring the way through the gate before either of the girls could pass. "What is that?" He inquired of Leona, pointing with the end of his sword, "There, on your shoulder."

"This would be a bird," Leona replied nervously, remembering what Najya had warned her about before. Beheading.

"That wouldn't happen to be the vizier's bird, would it?" He asked with great misgiving in his voice.

"Rawrk! The bird, the bird!" Iago cackled.

"Geez!" Najya exclaimed with loud frustration, throwing her hands up in the air. "Of the three of us, you recognize the bird the best? What is wrong with you?"

"I wouldn't be getting so worked up," the second guard warned, taking Najya firmly by the arm. "Jafar's been looking for you."

"Great," Najya groaned.

Leona looked ready to bolt, but the first guard took hold of her before she could do so. She noticed with chagrin as Iago leapt from her shoulder and flapped away, perching in a nearby tree. He wasn't willing to be caught in the middle of this situation.

"It'll be easier on you if you don't struggle," the guard advised her.

"Where are you taking us?" Najya shouted as her captor pushed her through the gate.

"You're going to have a visit with the Grand Vizier. Your friend will have to wait until he can find time to deal with her."

"Wait? Where?" Leona didn't like the direction this conversation was taking.

"In the dungeon most likely," her guard shrugged.

"You can't do that! We didn't do anything wrong!" Najya shrieked.

"We'll see what Jafar has to say about that."

The sentries remained silent after that, passing the girls off to another set of guards, who led them toward the palace. While Najya was directed up the stairs to the main entrance, Leona was led around the side and shoved through a small wooden door that opened onto a narrow set of stairs that led straight down into the dark depths of the dungeons. The dry, musty smell did nothing to ease her mood, though it wasn't fear she felt.

"Hey," Leona growled irritably to her new captor, "Can I at least put all this stuff down somewhere where it will be safe? It's a little heavy." She indicated the packages she still held under her arm.

The guard glanced toward his companion, who nodded slightly. "Very well," he replied. "You can give it to me and I will have it delivered to your chambers."

"Fine." She stumbled down the dark staircase, blinded by the sudden lack of light.

"You'll be staying here until the vizier can deal with you." The man gently pushed her through a squat stone doorway, taking the packages from her and closing the heavy wooden door behind her. She could hear the heavy bolt as it was dragged across the doorway.

"Why do you all keep saying that? What do you mean, 'deal with me'?" Leona struck her fists against the door in frustration.

The guard didn't respond, probably already hurrying to leave the depressing location.

Leona stumbled angrily down a small staircase, shuffling over the dirty stone floor and flopping onto a pile of moldy straw. It smelled suspiciously of old cabbages and manure, but she had been on her feet for most of the afternoon now, and it felt good to sit down. She crossed her arms tightly over her chest, shivering in the cool, damp chamber.

Looking around, she noticed that the room was bigger than it had seemed at first, most of it cloaked in shadows, the only light coming from a tiny, barred window placed high up in one of the walls.

"Why bother putting bars on it if it's a zillion feet up?" She griped. "It's not like anybody can reach it, and even if they did, it's too small to fit through." Feeling the wall with her palms, Leona winced as the roughly cut stone grated against her skin, which she remembered was scraped up from her venture over the palace wall. It had seemed like such a good idea only a few hours ago.

Time seemed to move slower so far below the palace, but Leona was not bored. In fact, she wished she could be back in the gardens, bored and safe. She wondered what would happen to her. Surely her father would step in and save her, wouldn't he?

Leona shuddered, realizing that he probably had no idea she was even in prison at the moment. He would be busy working until dusk, which was at least a couple more hours away. What if Jafar decided to come before then? He seemed to be in charge of the law in Agrabah, taking care of such mundane things so that the sultan and his daughter could lead lives of luxurious peace. That meant that he could carry out her sentence whenever he wished.

Leona no longer felt angry. She was terrified. Every slight noise—the scampering of a rat, faint voices of people walking past the window high above, a guard's footsteps outside her door—had her quivering anxiously. It almost came as a relief to her when the door burst open with a loud clang, revealing Jafar's shadowy silhouette. She noticed that Iago at least had found his master and sat perched on his shoulder now.

"Hmm...Quite a charming place you've chosen to spend your afternoon in, girl," Jafar murmured drolly, nearly waltzing down the steps into the room. He seemed all too pleased with himself.

"'Chosen' might be a bit of an exaggeration," Leona replied, standing up. "I'd rather not be trapped in here."

"Yes, I'm certain of that," the man chuckled, leaning on his staff and leering at her in amusement.

"Look, it was just a misunderstanding. The guard thought I was trying to steal your bird, but really I—"

"I've already heard the story," Jafar interrupted her in an annoyed tone. "And, while I admit that it was probably the worst conceivable idea for you to visit the marketplace _on your own_, I really cannot punish you." A broad, pleased grin crossed his face, and he reached out with one of his large, skeletal hands, taking her chin in his grip and turning her face upward. "After all, my dear, you did find Najya for me. Perhaps you aren't completely useless." He laughed softly, his voice a hiss, "Now isn't that a surprise?"

Leona cringed, wanting nothing more than to get away from this horrible man. Wrenching herself out of his grip, she inquired cautiously, "Does this mean I can leave?"

Jafar sighed and shrugged, drawling boredly, "I suppose so. I'm a bit offended that you didn't find your accommodations to your liking."

She did not find that funny at all. As she climbed the steps up to the door, she looked back, adding, "Glad you found your bird." And then she left.


	4. Intrigue

_Alright, sorry for the late post! This week has been hectic. Anyway, this chapter follows Joseph a bit more, actually. So yeah, have fun!_

Chapter 4

"Arrested! I cannot believe that not only did you disobey me by visiting the marketplace _alone_, but you had to top it off by getting arrested!" Joseph threw his hands up in the air in a hopeless manner. "What am I supposed to do with you, Leona?"

"Look, Papa, it's not like I _asked_ to be arrested. It was a misunderstanding." Leona tried to plead her case. She had known that her father wouldn't be happy to hear the news when he finished working for the day, but she hadn't known that he would have heard it first from one of the guards. Now she was missing dinner, and it seemed like her father's lecture was far from over.

"I'm sure it was, but that still doesn't make it right. You shouldn't have gone off to the marketplace. I _told_ you not to go!" He paced in front of Leona, who at the moment was sitting on the blue divan near the center of her room.

"Papa, I had Iago—" She began.

"That bird does not constitute as an escort, Leona! You could have gotten hurt!"

Leona made a face, trying to brush Joseph's concern off. "But I _didn't_. I can take care of myself. I'm not a child."

"You certainly seem to _act_ like a child," Joseph retorted sternly. When Leona didn't reply, he softened his demeanor a bit and sat down beside her. "Leona," he stated softly, "I worry for you. You're so very headstrong that you don't seem to realize when you are in danger. I know you _think_ you can take care of yourself, but there are things out there that are stronger and wiser and more powerful than you."

"That doesn't mean that you can hide me from everything that might be dangerous, Papa," Leona responded.

"I know," he conceded. "But you must realize that you don't have to go looking for trouble." Smiling slightly, Joseph added, "I've noticed that trouble doesn't have a problem finding you on its own, without your assistance."

"Look," Leona finally stated, "I know that it was a bad idea, but I made it back. And it was entertaining too. I had Najya with me—"

"Now _that_ worries me, Leona," Joseph laughed.

Leona couldn't help but smile as well. "What I'm trying to say, Papa, is that you trusted me to come with you on this journey. Surely the marketplace can have nothing that's more dangerous than pirates or brigands."

"Yes, but we didn't run into any brigands or pirates on the journey here," Joseph argued gently.

"The fact is that we _could_ have, Papa. I didn't run into any real danger in the marketplace today, even though I _could _have."

"You were in very real danger when you were arrested, Leona."

"I was not," Leona replied, shaking her head. "You can even ask Jafar if you need to. He said it was entirely a misunderstanding."

Joseph frowned darkly at the very mention of Jafar. "That man is dangerous," he warned. "I don't like how you've been drawing his attention to yourself."

"Papa," Leona laughed, "I only agreed to watch his bird for a few hours. And I haven't been _trying_ to attract anyone's notice. Besides, the sultan obviously trusts him."

"He might, but I don't. And I get the feeling that you aren't fond of the vizier either."

"You're right," Leona agreed. "I don't like him at all. I think he's pompous and overbearing and rude. But I also think that you're being overly cautious."

"It is better to be cautious and safe, Leona." Joseph sighed, putting his hands gently on her shoulders, "I just don't want anything to happen to you."

"I'll be fine," Leona reassured him with a confident smile. "There's nothing to worry about."

Joseph still looked unsure, but he didn't say anything more on the subject. After a few moments, he stood up and made his way from the room, leaving Leona alone for the rest of the night.

Joseph slept restlessly that night, haunted by dark thoughts and dreams. He finally woke early the next morning, before the sun had even risen, when the sky was just barely beginning to turn from deep black to a dark shade of blue. A cold sweat had covered him, and his breath came in short gasps as he sat up. Fear clutched him in its tightening grasp, but he could not for the life of him remember what he had been dreaming that had frightened him so.

His eyes darted around the shadowy room, trying to discern something in the dark corners, but there was nothing living in the room except for him. Sighing, he threw his thin blanket off and stood up, padding across the cool marble floor in his bare feet. Joseph picked up a change of clothing, not bothering to throw on a shirt. He was just going to make a quick trip to the bathhouse before he went to work. He remembered to grab the oilskin satchel that held all of his tools just as he brushed through the doorway and into the dark corridor beyond.

It was not a long journey to the bathhouse, which was provided mostly for guest use, since everybody else had their own private baths. Upon his arrival, Joseph was not surprised to see that there were no servants there yet. He didn't mind; he was used to taking care of things himself anyway. While he could have kindled a fire to heat the water, Joseph thought against it, hoping that a cool bath might help to rouse him and shake off the shadows of his forgotten nightmares.

The water was cold, but Joseph had been in worse. He sunk down into the tub with a groan, closing his eyes and sighing heavily as the water lapped at his pale, bare skin. Tilting his head back, Joseph sat in silent languor for quite some time before he actually started to wash himself. The soaps and oils were fragrant and soothing, and as Joseph rinsed off and stepped from the tub, he began to feel his demons fleeing, his mind clearing.

"Wonderful," he murmured to himself as he dressed. As he had expected, the cold water had eased his mind, and he felt ready to begin the sculpting of the new pillars.

The sun had still not risen when he emerged from the bathhouse, but the sky was noticeably lighter, and Joseph did not think anybody would mind if he started his workday a bit early today. He meandered toward the east wing, taking his time and enjoying the cool morning air. The only other people out at such a time were the gardeners, who always did their work before the day got unbearably hot, and a few patrols of guards, who greeted him with curt nods as they passed.

Finally, Joseph came upon the entrance to the east wing, which was a much older part of the palace. Despite its disuse, it still had an air of stoic grandeur about it, and Joseph was pleased to see that the skeleton scaffolding had been finished sometime after he had left yesterday afternoon. He was excited to begin restoring some of the old engravings high up on the arches.

Swinging up onto a ladder, he climbed gracefully upward, occasionally stepping off onto one of the wooden platforms to check the stability of the palace's stonework. It did not take long, and he was about to leap down when he heard voices suddenly approaching. One of them was low and difficult to hear, but the other was screechy, loud, and obnoxious, and Joseph soon found that he didn't like what it was saying. Remaining planted where he was, Joseph carefully lowered himself flat on his stomach, pressing himself into the wooden platform and hoping that he was high enough not to be seen as the voices gradually grew closer.

"—I say we just get rid of the girl. She hasn't been helpful at all." The first voice, and louder of the two, stated.

"And what would you propose we do with her? Send her back?" The second voice was low and silky and all too familiar to Joseph.

Jafar. What was he doing in this part of the palace so early? And who could he possibly be talking to? Joseph had no choice but to stay and listen.

"You said yourself that there's nowhere to send her back to. But I heard that Aziz was taking new, ah...'recruits.' Rawrk ark ark!" Horrendous laughter caused Joseph to wince, especially when Jafar joined his companion.

Eventually, however, the vizier cut in, "No, Iago. I do believe we'll let her stay for a bit longer. She is one of the few people here that the foreign girl trusts, and as you know, whomever she trusts also has her father's trust. I'm sure we can use them to our advantage."

Joseph frowned. _Iago_? Wasn't that the vizier's _bird_?

"Remind me how they can be useful. So far I'm convinced that they're just as pathetic as that chump sultan and his chump daughter," Iago retorted.

"Well, to begin with, my pithy little friend, should something _unfortunate_ happen to our dearly beloved monarch and the princess, we need only to point the finger at the foreigners. It would be their word against _mine_."

"And then _we_ have a straight shot at the throne!" Iago screeched excitedly.

"Yes, Iago. Then I will be free to deal with Najya in whatever way I see fit." Joseph could almost hear Jafar smile from below. By now they were directly below the scaffolding, and Joseph had no difficulty hearing Jafar confide in a quieter voice to Iago, "But before we dispense with them, I intend to have a bit of fun. It's been so long since I've had such easy prey."

Joseph's heart pounded so violently in his chest that he was sure that he would soon be discovered. He couldn't believe what he was hearing. Certainly, Jafar had seemed as though his priorities were not in the sultan's best interest, but to blatantly propose treasonous plots against his ruler?

"Easy prey! Who're you talking about, Jafar? Not that stupid artisan's daughter!"

"Hmm," Jafar chuckled. "And why not? Is there anything to stop me? She is useless otherwise."

"Yeah," Iago conceded, "but you know she'll put up a fight. And her father too."

"Yes," the man murmured. "I'm counting on it."

It was painful for Joseph to remain still and listen to the horrible talk below him, but he set his jaw forward and closed his eyes, his hands clenched into white-knuckled fists. He had to wait until they were gone before he did anything.

Unfortunately, the vizier and his bird seemed to have stopped in their tracks, talking merely a few feet below Joseph.

"So, Jafar," Iago began curiously, "how do you intend to work the nuisance into this plan? You said she could gain the foreigners' trust."

"Oh, she already has the girl's trust. And I'm sure she'll befriend the artisan before long."

"Great, but you've still got one problem. She thinks that she _genuinely_ likes them. You should have seen her in the marketplace with the girl."

"A minor setback, which I intend to deal with. I'll have Najya under my control before long," Jafar assured the bird. "She has a weakness."

"Insanity?" Iago suggested.

"No, you twit," Jafar snapped. "Her father."

"What do you mean by that? He was just as bad as you. She hated him."

Jafar cackled darkly, "No, Iago, she actually admired the man when she was younger. I'm sure that somewhere deep down she still wishes to please him, and I have a proposition that she will be unable to refuse."

"So when are you planning on talking to the little monster?"

"Mmm," Jafar grunted noncommittally. "Perhaps tonight. These things take time."

"Of course," Iago replied impatiently.

"Come now, we have other things to focus on. I want to you stay with the girl as often as you can. Find out whatever you can about her. And don't interfere if she starts talking to Najya. Just listen," Jafar ordered carefully.

Joseph noticed with great relief that their voices were beginning to fade. It seemed that they were leaving finally, and a quick peek over the edge of the scaffolding proved just that.

"Yeah, right. Sure. Send the bird to do the dirty work. Like I want to listen to that girl blither on about her problems," Iago grumbled.

"Hush, Iago. For now we must be content with what little we have to do. Things will soon get interesting, I am sure." Jafar looked very smug as he disappeared around the corner.

Joseph wasn't quite sure what to do with himself once the vizier and his bird were gone. His first instinct was to run to the sultan and warn him, but he shot that idea down as soon as he realized that if it came to a contest between Joseph's word and Jafar's, the sultan would lean in his Grand Vizier's favor. Sighing with frustration, the man sat up, stretching muscles that were sore from being tensed for so long. Well, he could at least be on his guard, and he would warn Leona to be careful as well. Perhaps if he was especially cautious around Jafar, he might be able to glean a bit more information and gather proof to take to the sultan. One thing was for sure: he was in quite an uncomfortable situation.

Not long afterwards, his workers began to arrive, and Joseph finally mustered the energy to clamber down from his perch. He took a few moments to gather his thoughts before he was able to paste on a kind smile and begin the day's work. Most of the stoneworkers were put to work on shaping the block of marble that was supposed to be the new pillar. Joseph felt as if he would only get in the way at the moment, so he climbed back up the scaffolding and began to renew the tiny, intricate engravings high up on the braces that kept the tall domed ceilings from crashing down.

Joseph was able to lose himself in his work for quite some time, carefully etching into the stone with great precision, cautiously replicating effects that had worn away over time. It was a delicate process, one that took patience and care. His workers had learned early on that any interruptions would be dealt with swiftly and with great prejudice and grumbling.

Unfortunately, his visitor didn't realize this.

"Hiya!" Najya's voice sounded loudly in Joseph's ear just as he had painstakingly begun to form the outline of a tiny lily in the stone.

"!!!" What came out of Joseph's mouth as he jerked in surprise seemed to be nothing but a wordless shriek to those below, but at her close range, Najya knew exactly what he had really said.

"Wow! I didn't know you even knew that word!" She exclaimed with a grin. "I know a better one for these kinds of situations, though. It's—"

"I don't need to know, thank you," Joseph replied hastily, not looking away from his ruined work.

Staring with disbelief at his flower, which looked more like some strange mythical beast with a jagged line through its middle and a crack through its head, Joseph muttered, "This will take hours to fix! I'll have to import a new block of marble—" He suddenly whirled on his assailant and opened his mouth to have a few very strong words with her when he realized who exactly had interrupted him. Joseph frowned and closed his mouth with a snap, gritting his teeth together and turning his back to her.

"So...whatcha doin'?" She inquired curiously, sitting with crossed legs and rocking back and forth innocently.

"I'm working," Joseph finally replied in a well-tempered voice, rationalizing that she hadn't meant to startle him. The girl was just being friendly.

"What kind of work?"

"Look, don't you have somewhere else to be?" Joseph remembered the way Jafar had talked about her that morning. She might think she was being kind, but that didn't mean that any information she got out of Joseph wouldn't be used against him. She was related to Jafar, after all, and that meant that the artisan would tread carefully around her.

"Nope," Najya shrugged. "Leona and Jasmine didn't want to go swimming with me, and they're just talking about boring stuff."

Joseph sat up with a sigh, realizing that the beam he had been working on was indeed ruined, and he decided that something nearer the ground might be a bit safer with Najya in such close contact. Much to his dismay, she followed him down, curiously peeping over his shoulder now and again as he paced across the floor. Well, he thought to himself, that paneling needed a bit of work, and the designs were a little less intricate and detailed, which would certainly be less frustrating.

"Whatcha doin'?" Najya inquired for a second time as Joseph got down on his stomach and pulled a small chisel from the oilskin that contained his tools.

"I'm refinishing this paneling. It's a very delicate process," Joseph replied, resigning himself to the fact that Najya was not going to leave anytime soon. He couldn't help but feel a bit sorry for the girl, who seemed bored and out of place.

"I want to help. I'm delicate," Najya stated somberly.

Joseph's hair practically stood on end, but he kept his voice calm. "Are you now?"

"Yes," Najya nodded eagerly. "Even Jafar says I'm like a delicate flower."

"Oh?" Joseph was mildly interested now. "Which one?"

"A man-eating Venus flytrap."

"How charming," Joseph murmured, concentrating wholly on his work. It was the only way he could keep himself from laughing wryly. Sometimes, despite his numerous faults, Jafar knew what he was talking about.

"So, can I help?"

Joseph was about to answer, but he found that he didn't have to when a shadow fell across them both. He glanced up briefly before ducking back down into his work, gritting his teeth.

"Najya," Jafar stated in a silky voice, stepping over Joseph as if he wasn't even there. "You should know better than to disrupt the servants in the middle of their work. It isn't polite."

"You wouldn't know polite if it came up and bit your nose off," Joseph muttered in a voice too low to be heard.

"What was that, artisan?" Apparently Jafar had keen hearing.

"Nothing, Jafar," Joseph replied without looking up or even pausing in his work.

"You'd do well to learn some respect." Jafar planted his staff directly in front of Joseph's face, blocking his view of the panel he had been working on.

Joseph slowly sat up, more than a little irritated by this point in time. "Respect? You know no—"

Najya could see that the situation was about to go in a very bad direction, and she intervened immediately. "Hey, Gramps, what are you doing here?"

"Why, looking for you, Najya," he replied in a soft, wheedling tone, forgetting about Joseph.

"For what? I'm not in trouble anymore." She crossed her arms over her chest and glared up at him.

"I know," the tall man nodded slowly, smiling in a very offsetting manner. "I merely wished to have a word with you."

"Joy," Najya groaned, looking back longingly as Joseph resumed his work. She was sure that this would not be an experience she would like.

The look Jafar was giving her as she walked at his side made her shudder. It was all too much like the expression her father had always worn on his face; a bit of pride, detachment, and the promise that disappointment would not be too far away should she fail. But there was something else: a certain secret pleasure that he knew something she did not, and he was fully ready to use it against her.

Najya couldn't believe that she didn't just run away then and there.

"Have you ever thought, Najya," Jafar began in that silky voice he used when he was trying to win somebody over, "about learning a bit of sorcery again?"

"What? No way. I already told you a long time ago that I didn't want to get involved in that stuff." Najya scowled and waved him off.

"Why ever not?" Jafar closed in on her, making sure she could not dash away as he continued, "You've done it before. I hear you were quite skilled at it too." He smiled, speaking this last line at his staff, holding it up and watching the light gleam off of the polished metal. He didn't need to look at Najya to sense her squirming uncomfortably.

"I'm not interested," she replied stonily.

"Now, Najya," Jafar's voice was quiet and soothing, "I know I would never be as great a teacher as was your father, but there are still things you could learn from me."

Najya frowned suspiciously. "How did you know about that?"

"What? That you were learning sorcery from your father when he died? Come now, I'm not entirely blind." He straightened up, shrugging his shoulders and adding with a sigh, "Well, I see you need some time to think about this. Don't give me an answer until you have thought carefully on the matter." With that, he walked away, casting one last warning look back at the girl as he left. She looked troubled.

Despairing, and a little angry that Jafar had approached her so openly and dredged up things she didn't want to think about, Najya sulked. That conversation had been just as aggravating as it had been short. She wanted to return to the worksite and cool off a bit, perhaps pester Joseph more, but that was the direction in which Jafar had just vanished. No matter how much fun it was to bother the artisan, Najya did not want to have anything to do with Jafar at the moment, and he was probably going to want a word with Joseph, who had shown a dangerous amount of disrespect for the vizier.

Indeed, it was true. Jafar and Najya had only been gone for a few minutes, and Joseph had managed to keep working diligently, when that same dark shadow fell over him once again.

"Yes?" He inquired without even looking up. He didn't need to. He knew who his visitor was.

The end of Jafar's staff clunked down on the stone directly in front of Joseph's face, barely missing his nose by less than an inch. "Look at me when you address me, artisan." Jafar's voice was haughty and stern.

Gritting his teeth, Joseph sighed wearily and stood, glaring at Jafar the entire time he did so. "Is this more to your liking, sir?" Joseph's voice was filled with vitriol as he spoke, masked behind a thin layer of indifference.

"Why so sullen?" Jafar asked with a slight smile, feigning ignorance. "Has there been another problem with your daughter?"

Joseph's bottle green eyes widened briefly before narrowing into a piercing glare. He had tried to be accommodating, but this was too much for his patience. Remembering the conversation he had overheard that morning, Joseph growled, "My daughter is none of your business. And if I _ever_ even _think_ that you might possibly wish to make her your business, you will wish you had never set eye on her."

It was a bit daunting when all Jafar did in response was laugh. He didn't even seem slightly troubled. "Was that a threat, artisan?"

"A warning," Joseph clarified. "Stay away from my daughter."

"What ever gave you the impression that I had any intention of doing otherwise?" Jafar inquired amusedly, leaning on his staff.

The artisan hesitated, wondering if he dared reveal that he had heard Jafar's plans. Jafar's expression was a challenge, wanting Joseph to admit it, to belie what he knew.

"Artisan?" Jafar inquired with a leer, noticing Joseph's conflict. "You don't look well. Perhaps you should sit down for a bit."

Joseph stepped forward, closing the few feet between them until they were mere inches apart. "Don't play games with me, Jafar. I know what you're up to." He paused, staring the other man down and making sure that his meaning had been understood before he continued, "I repeat: stay away from my daughter."

Jafar was not smiling anymore. He stared calculatingly at Joseph and then finally stated calmly, even blandly:

"You shouldn't have said that. For your sake."

Turning away from Joseph, Jafar left, his black cape trailing ominously behind him. Things would have to be done about this artisan...


End file.
